Savannahians manage diabetes with Community Health Mission's simple formula of diet and exercise

Betty Darby

Saturday

Jan 28, 2012 at 12:12 AM

When was the last time you read a label in a grocery store aisle?

Most of us would have to confess it's been a while. But for those who are diabetic, the numbers and percentages displayed on the food cans and packages can be some of the most important reading they do. Using that information properly can help diabetics feel better - and save precious health care dollars in the process.

This knowledge drove the folks who run Savannah's Community Health Mission to seek out partners and launch its diabetes management program five years ago. It's not a flashy, gimmicky program, just one that teaches those struggling with diabetes how to manage their disease by doing things like reading food labels, planning sensible meals and exercising at the CHM's partner, the YMCA of Coastal Georgia. But despite its plain-Jane approach of diet and exercise, this program has helped hundreds of diabetics get on top of their health problems - not to mention saving local tax dollars that would have gone to indigent hospitalization costs.

Gloria Tyson has known she was diabetic for 11 years. She struggled with the disease for years, and now, thanks to the diabetes management program, she knows more about how to control her condition.

"On my weight, I had gotten up to something I didn't even know I was there," she said of starting the CHM program. "I have since dropped weight tremendously, and the last time I weighed, it was 40 pounds."

She's also seen results in a more critical measure, the "A1C" readings from her blood tests. This test, which reflects long-term blood sugar control, is more comprehensive and "big picture" than the daily blood sugar readings many diabetics do at home. The American Diabetes Association suggests diabetics keep their A1C reading below a 7 on the test's scale. Tyson's was at 10 last November and has steadily fallen since she started the program. Her latest test, back in August, showed her at 7.

Tyson has now enrolled in a training program that prepares those over 50 to re-enter the workforce.

"Now I feel like exercise," she said about her weight loss. "I do the exercises, too, mostly three days a week."

That exercise program is where the CHM's partner, the YMCA of Coastal Georgia, comes into the picture.

"We have actually been partnering with the diabetes management program for indigent patients for a number of years, providing both classroom space and resources, such as workout facilities," said Bucky Johnson, vice president of operations for the Y. "We found through that process we were able to do a lot of good for people who need the help."

Exercise is a major component of diabetes management, and CHM's patients are unlikely to be able to afford health club memberships otherwise. The mission coordinates the services of volunteer physicians and is supported by both of Savannah's hospital systems. It treats the working poor - those whose jobs don't provide health insurance or who can't afford it, but who do not qualify for Medicaid because they are working.

Why are families included in the YMCA memberships and allowed to come to the diabetes classes?

"When you are telling a patient to change their diet, sometimes the whole family has to change. It is a family issue because people aren't going to cook two different meals," said Dr. Miriam Rittmeyer, executive director of the health mission.

"We have been treating patents with diabetes from the clinical point of view from the beginning. But we added the self-management component about five years ago," Rittmeyer said. "With it, they were given tools to manage better the disease. We saw also a reduction in depression among the patients because they are exercising and feeling better."

Lowering the risk of complications from diabetes - which can be catastrophic, such as amputations, heart attacks and strokes - also helps control costs, and that is a major benefit, since as many as 20 percent of CHM's patients are diabetic.

Her public health background has given Rittmeyer a grounding in the grim statistics of diabetes. For example, 250 diabetics who develop complications can cost a community $1.7 million - and that's not including the cost of lost productivity, disability and premature death.

The Community Health Mission serves the working poor - those who are not eligible for Medicaid but who cannot afford private insurance or whose employers don't offer a health care benefit. The mission draws on the work of volunteer physicians and the support of various health agencies, including both of Savannah's hospital systems.

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